Don't Follow Leaders, Don't Laugh at Vaughn Meader

Ron Hart on the upcoming election:

As I type my column on my Word document program, I notice that it shows "Ayn" in "Ayn Rand" as misspelled with no corrections suggested. It's like Word does not want to acknowledge one of the most admired writers of modern times. Interestingly enough, Word does correctly spell both "Kucinich" and "Dukakis." Do not fall for campaign promises. Remember, Obama was going to get us out of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, be a post-partisan president, heal racial divides, and go line-by-line to make budget cuts. He has done just the opposite. Do not base your vote entirely on campaign promises; they last about as long as appliance warranties. Vote on the person, on his or her personal beliefs and actions as they relate to the role of government. The less government does, the better off we all are.

Whole thing here.

And now on to the headline allusion, which proves irrefutably that the '60s weren't all that:

Comments

[prolefeed]

Ron Hart seems to have forgotten that a humor columnist is supposed to be funny.

[Jozef]

Both OpenOffice.org Writer and Firefox recognize "Ayn" correctly. Hooray for free market!

[silent v]

The misspell part is right, but Word gives several suggested corrections including "any" which is probably mistyped as "ayn" more often than "Ayn" is intentionally typed.

[Pro Libertate]

Voting for someone with little or no public track record for high office is foolish. It doesn't mean that someone with a long resume is great, but at least we know what to expect. Here's something I can say for sure: a Gov. Obama would've never even run for the presidency.

By the way, that public track record need not be political, just so long as it is sufficient to make some judgments.

[T]

Tabula rasa, baby. You can project all your dreams on the guy with no record. Harder to do when the candidate has actually done stuff.

And, apparently, it works great.

[Ragin Cajun]

As long as the candidate puts the right nouns and verbs together, then he must be the right choice! What other criteria could there be?

[Pro Libertate]

No offense, America, but it's pretty stupid to vote blind for the most powerful and dangerous position in the world.

[T]

We didn't get to be the fattest and most powerful nation on earth by making carefully considered rational decisions, ProL. We have become great not by our intelligence but in spite of it.

[Pro Libertate]

Our politicians had nothing to do with our rise to greatness.

[Episiarch]

Voting blind is an American tradition. What the fuck, are you Canadian or something?

[Pro Libertate]

The only way to stop our stupid from ruining everything is to weaken government to the point that our elected idiots can't screw anything up. That was the whole point of that Constitution thingee we used to have.

[Episiarch]

I'm joking, of course. But why aren't you? Are you sober or something?

[Pro Libertate]

It's the election. I got my sample ballot yesterday and am extra annoyed. I heard on the radio a couple of days ago that an increase in the local sales tax--to fund some stupid rail nonsense--is polling favorably. WTF?

[Brett L]

If my Houston experience has taught me anything, its that light rail will kill stupid people. Especially in an urban area. Think of it as a Darwinator if it passes.

[Pro Libertate]

Well, I'm voting against it this weekend, when early voting opens up.

I must be extra pissed, because I'm actually going to figure out the ballot before I vote. Even the judicial retention votes and especially the amendments.

[The Bearded Hobbit]

I, too, looked over the ballot ahead of time to read over the amendments and such. One thing that I noticed was what every incumbent on my ballot (except my state rep.) is a Democrat. And no third parties.

One of the amendments was to raise the number of limited terms from two to three. Hell NO on that one!!

... Hobbit

[Spartacus]

Vote NO on judicial retention. Continue to vote NO until they get it in their heads that approving warrants is supposed to be a check on police excesses, not an enabler of them.

[Brett L]

Yeah. My statement was meant as a consolation after the idiots outvote you. Some of them will be run down by the very subsidized transportation they voted for.

[zeroentitlement]

I'd say that's precisely the root of the problem, is the moron electorate assuming that the power and danger held in the President's ashy little paw is a lot bigger than it actually is. Voters believe the President can and will do everything from get you a cushy job to handing you a new-construction house on a silver platter to making your kids rich, degreed geniuses for free. Most of Obama's supporters still believe that he either can or should be doing all that and more. And his handlers are plenty happy to help the sheeple believe it.

[I'll Drive, Thanks]

"Voting for someone with little or no public track record for high office is foolish."

That must be why we can't seem to get any Libertarians elected.

[creech]

Or even low office. You could have a prominent cpa run for county controller against a school teacher and a nurse and as long as the L is after the cpa's name, he or she is going to lose big time.

[John]

"Voting for someone with little or no public track record for high office is foolish."

I don't know that I agree with that. Bush II had a track record in Texas as being more conservative and small government than his father. But once he got in office things didn't work out that way did they? I don't think anyone who looked at Bill Clinton's track record would have predicted that he would go to war with Yugoslavia and reform welfare.

You just never know what someone is going to do once they become President. The pull of outside events is too strong. All you really can do is vote based on values and character and hope for the best.

Look at it this way, Richard Nixon, Teddy Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson all had real experience in high office before becoming President. How did that work out?

In contrast, Coolidge was a one term Senator, Harding had been a single term governor and then VP, Eisenhower had never held public office, and Reagan had been a two term governor but had been out of office for nearly a decade when becoming President. I will take the second group over the first any day.

[PapayaSF]

Agree, but I'm not sure Harding belongs in that group.

[P Brooks]

Let the sockpuppeting commence!

It's like Word does not want to acknowledge one of the most admired writers of modern times.

"That Barney Rubble; what an actor!"

ps- you suck, Hart.

[Sheldon]

P brooks is an angry man who at 43 still sleeps in a twin bed in his parents basement.

Hart Rocks!

[Episiarch]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[Daze]

Hart's next column -- complaining about a headline/image juxtaposition in Google News (humorously, sort of, not really).

[Virginia]

Speaking of the OC Register, the editorial board is rethinking their position on Prop 19 in the wake of Arnold's "infraction."

A final determination by the Editorial Board is yet to be made on the marijuana legalization measure, Proposition 19, which is being considered anew given the governor's signature on a bill that makes possession of small amounts of marijuana a less-serious offense.

[JoeyJoJoJrShabadoo]

Obama pledged to elevate the war in Afghanistan and get out of Iraq. He mostly accomplished that.

[Onward and upward]

Out of Iraq, into Pakistan.

[YellowBelly]

Hart is usually PJ O'Rourke funny, this one not is normal fare.

http://www.ronaldhart.com I love the one on the televangelists "Ministers should do more than lay people...:

LOL

[AririeShrug]

Hart makes the point that the Tea Party movement is not the libertarian movement. We part company when we can't beat off.

Hands down, a great column.

[Alan Vanneman]

And now on to the headline allusion, which proves irrefutably that Nick Gillespie is older than, I don't know, Rich Little.

[The Gobbler]

Say Alan, shouldn't you be at home writing Valley of the Dolls?

[Hope Warranty Corp]

"as long as appliance warranties"
We can sell you an extended warranty on your way out the door.

[BakedPenguin]

Obama didn't promise to get us out of Afghanistan. He said it was the good war, and we should send more guys there.

One of the few promises he's kept.

[Joe R.]

From the article: "Our pop culture has been so blurred with politics that Forbes' list of most powerful women has Lady Gaga ahead of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi."

I put that in the "feature not bug" file. What, we want Pelosi (and government generally) to be MORE powerful?

[Episiarch]

But can you read her poker face?

[The Gobbler]

Why yes. I have no trouble reading Lady Gaga's poker face.

[Butts Wagner]

None of Pelosi's muffin bluffin' please.

[T]

Botox, baby. Nobody can read a paralyzed grimace. If you can discern what Pelosi is thinking from her facial expression, you have psychic powers.

[Pro Libertate]

"Thinking" is such a strong word to use in connection with her.

[Pro Libertate]

That's exactly right. Politicians shouldn't be cracking the top ten thousand. In fact, it should be considered gauche to invite one to private parties.

[P Brooks]

an increase in the local sales tax--to fund some stupid rail nonsense--is polling favorably.

Based on historical examples, it's because each and every one of the rubes who "favors" it does so in the expectation the other guy will ride the train, leaving extra room on the road for carefree zooming hither and yon.

[P Brooks]

Remember, Pro Lib:

No matter what it is

or who commenced it

I'm against it

[Pro Libertate]

Great words.

[John]

http://althouse.blogspot.com/2.....ilean.html

In other news, Chris Mathews is still embarrassingly stupid.

[Pro Libertate]

That's one of the stupider leftwing memes. We libertarians simply believe that civil society can usually reach accommodations without the heavy, forceful hand of government.

Besides, it was an extra stupid remark by Matthews, because if the miners, free of any governmental compulsion, cooperated, it shows that they didn't need government to do so.

[WallyPolusa]

Hart is right, if a politician begins with the belief of a small government, all else falls into place. Reagan comes to mind. Well written piece here that the average American can understand. Kudos.